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There are works of art so inherently beautiful or stunning that anyone looking at them ends up choking back tears, or standing transfixed, or simply unable to breathe for several seconds. What you won't often hear is that those are the exceptions, that most paintings, buildings and sculptures require anterior knowledge to be fully appreciated.

Once you know what to look for, the once-abstruse and confusing world of chiaroscuro, Pre-Raphaelite, and oxidation fire becomes navigable and even a welcome place from the ho-hum mundanities of the everyday world. Though, of course, we'd be the last to encourage art appreciation for mere escapism—if a work can't reveal some element of human nature or help us understand things a little better, it isn't worth much.

This is one reason a lot of modern art can't really be considered art at all. It isn't intended to reveal anything, but simply to be "living commentary," a mere reflection, not of reality, but of the artist's inner conflict or angst. Sometimes it's not even that deep, and simply reflects the belief that there is no meaning in the world, that everything is empty, that nihilism is the only truth.

We reject those claims entirely. Everything is meaningful because Christ has made it so. Taken too far that idea is sometimes used to defend all kinds of non-art and just plain bad art, but all it really means is that everything is either consistent with or in rebellion against God's truth, and that artistic endeavours reveal which side the artist is on.

For Christians, understanding art from this perspective should be the primary motive in studying anything from the Sistine Chapel to Rembrandt's portraits to the illustrations of N.C. Wyeth. Art has the potential to entertain and delight, but it also affects the attitudes and thoughts of those who come in contact with it. Understanding a work's context and significance will immensely help us determine whether it's beneficial or pernicious.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.

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In-Stock Books & Materials

	American Art Bingo Volume I by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $16.96
	American Art History I - Bundle by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
	American Art History II - Bundle by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS)
	American Art History Volume I by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $33.96
	American Art History Volume II by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $33.96 $21.60 (1 in stock)
	Art of the Southeastern Indians by Shirley Glubok from Macmillan for 3rd-6th grade in Native American History (Location: HISA-19NAT) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Art of the Spanish in the United States and Puerto Rico by Shirley Glubok from Macmillan for 2nd-6th grade in Vintage History & Biographies (Location: VIN-HIS) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Art Smart: Spot the Details and Find Out the Facts Act from Dover Publications for 1st-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $8.49 $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Baby Blessing by Welleran Poltarnees from Laughing Elephant for Kindergarten-Adult in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin by Marguerite Henry & Wesley Dennis Reprint from Aladdin Paperbacks for 3rd-6th grade in Animal Stories (Location: FIC-ANI) $6.79
	BFB Art Appreciation Family Study Pack from Beautiful Feet Books for 2nd-12th grade in Beautiful Feet Books (Location: HISCUR-BFB) $109.95
	BFB Art Appreciation Family Study Pack from Beautiful Feet Books for 2nd-12th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $109.95
	Boy Who Drew Birds A Story of John James Audubon by Jacqueline Davies from Houghton Mifflin for 1st-3rd grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $15.29
	Carl Larsson's A Home by Carl Larsson and Lennart Rudstrom from G.P. Putnam's Sons for 3rd-Adult in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Claude Monet: Sunshine and Waterlilies by Steven Packard Smart About Art by True Kelley from Grosset & Dunlap for 1st-3rd grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $2.40 (1 in stock)
	Come Look With Me: American Indian Art by Stephanie Salomon 1st Edition for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Come Look With Me: Artist at Work by R. Sarah Richardson from Charlesbridge for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $14.41
	Come Look with Me: Enjoying Art with Children by Gladys S. Blizzard from Charlesbridge for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $12.00 $10.00 (3 in stock)
	Come Look With Me: Exploring Landscape Art With Children by Gladys S. Blizzard from Charlesbridge for 1st-3rd grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $14.41
	Discovering Great Artists Hands-On Art Experiences in the Styles of Great Masters by MaryAnn F. Kohl & Kim Solga 2^nd edition from Chicago Review Press for Preschool-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $18.69
	Discovering Great Artists (old) Hands-On Art for Children in the Styles of the Great Masters by MaryAnn F. Kohl & Kim Solga from Bright Ring Publishing for Preschool-6th grade in Clearance: Art & Music (Location: ZCLE-ART) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	Drawing American Art Volume II by Kristin Draeger from ArtK12 for 3rd-10th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $25.46 $16.00 (1 in stock)
	Edgar Degas Artists Through the Ages by Alix Wood from Windmill Books for 2nd-5th grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	El Greco by Mike Venezia from Children's Press for 2nd-5th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Famous Children: Picasso by Tony Hart, illustrated by Susan Hellard from Barron's for 1st-3rd grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Girl Who Drew Butterflies How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science by Joyce Sidman from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for 3rd-8th grade 2019 Robert F. Sibert Medal winner in Biographies (Location: BIO) $18.69
	Grandma Moses Painter of Rural America Women of Our Time by Zibby Oneal, illustrated by Donna Ruff from Puffin Books for 3rd-6th grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $2.00 (1 in stock)
	History of Art - Flashcards Creation to Contemporary from Veritas Press for 2nd-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $29.00 $17.50 (1 in stock)
	History of Art - Workbook Creation to Contemporary 1^st edition from Veritas Press for 2nd-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $49.00
	Horse in Art by Ruth Zuelke from Lerner Publishing Group for 3rd-6th grade in Vintage Nonfiction (Location: VIN-NFIC) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	In Search of Norman Rockwell's America by Photography by Kevin Rivoli, Artwork by Norman Rockwell from Howard Books for 3rd-Adult in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Joke's on George by Michael O. Tunnell; illustrated by Kathy Osborn from Tambourine Books for Preschool-4th grade in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Kindergarten Art Posters from Memoria Press for Kindergarten-12th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $20.00 (1 in stock)
	Leonardo da Vinci by Diane Stanley from HarperCollins Biography for 3rd-6th grade 1997 NCTE Orbis Pictus Award in Biographies (Location: BIO) $10.19
	Leonardo da Vinci for Kids His Life and Ideas by Janis Herbert from Chicago Review Press Biography/Activity Book for 3rd-8th grade in Renaissance & Reformation (Location: HISW-REN) $17.95
	Leonardo: Beautiful Dreamer by Robert Byrd 1^st edition from Dutton Children's Books for 3rd-5th grade 2004 NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor Book in Biographies (Location: BIO) $7.20 (1 in stock)
	Life and Work of Henry Moore by Sean Connolly from Heinemann Library for Kindergarten-3rd grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Linnea in Monet's Garden by Christina Bjork & Lena Anderson from R&S Books Biography for Preschool- 3rd Grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.80 (2 in stock)
	Lives of the Artists by M. B. Goffstein from Farrar, Straus and Giroux for 3rd-8th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Looking at Painting: Families by Peggy Roalf from Hyperion/Madison Press for 3rd-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Masterpiece of the Month by Jennifer Thomas from Teacher Created Materials, Inc. for 1st-3rd grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $3.60 (1 in stock)
	Matisse: Painter of the Essential Art for Children by Yolande Baillet from Chelsea House Publishing for 3rd-6th grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $5.60 (1 in stock)
	Norman Rockwell's America by Christopher Finch, Illustrated by Norman Rockwell from Reader's Digest for 3rd-Adult in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Norman Rockwell: Storyteller with a Brush by Beverly Gherman from Atheneum for 3rd-7th grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Painting Wonder How Pauline Baynes Illustrated the Worlds of C.S. Lewis & J.R.R. Tolkien by Katie Wray Schon from Waxwing Books for 1st-3rd grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $16.14
	Paul Gauguin Artists Through the Ages by Alix Wood from Windmill Books for 2nd-5th grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Picture This! Activities and Adventures in Impressionism Art Explorers by Joyce Raimondo from Watson-Guptill Publications for 2nd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Pierre-Auguste Renoir Art for Children by Ernest Raboff from HarperTrophy for 3rd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $3.20 (1 in stock)
	Pierre-Auguste Renoir: Paintings That Smile by True Kelley from Grosset & Dunlap for 3rd-6th grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $2.80 (2 in stock)
	Rousseu: Still Voyages Art For Children by Didier Grosjean and Claudine Roland, illustrated by Francine De Boeck, translated by John Goodman from Chelsea House Publishing for 3rd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Roy Lichtenstein Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists by Mike Venezia from Children's Press Picture Book Biography for 3rd-5th grade in Artists & Illustrators (Location: ELE-ARTISTS) $2.80 (1 in stock)
	Sparky & Spike Charles Schulz and the Wildest, Smartest Dog Ever by Barbara Lowell, illustrated by Dan Andreasen from Harry N. Abrams, Inc. Picture Biography for Preschool-3rd grade in Biographies (Location: BIO) $14.41 $8.00 (1 in stock)
	Spot the Differences Book 3 by Susan L. Rattiner, ed. from Dover Publications for 3rd-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $9.34
	Spot the Differences Book 4 Art Masterpiece Mysteries (Dover Children's Activity Books) by Alan Weller from Dover Publications for 3rd-7th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $9.34
	Usborne Introduction to Modern Art by Rosie Dickins from Scholastic Press for 3rd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $6.40 (1 in stock)
	Usborne Introduction to Modern Art by Rosie Dickins from Usborne for 3rd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $7.20 (1 in stock)
	Vinnie and Abraham by Dawn FitzGerald, illustrated by Catherine Stock from Charlesbridge for Kindergarten-3rd grade in U.S. Monuments & Symbols (Location: HISV-LANUS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Wit and Whimsy of Mary Engelbreit by Mary Engelbreit from Andrews McMeel for 3rd-Adult in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.80 (1 in stock)
	Work of Art Creative Activities Inspired by Famous Artists by Joan Chambers, Molly Hood and Michael Peake from Belair Publications for 3rd-6th grade in Art History & Appreciation (Location: ELE-ARTHIS) $4.00 (1 in stock)
	World of Art Exploring International Art by Sharon Jeffus & Jamie Aramini from My Father's World for 2nd-5th grade in My Father's World (Location: CUR-MFW) $14.00 (1 in stock)

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